Hand in Hand Global Mission Support Blog Digest

This is the first in a series of “Give thanks!” moments offered by ELCA missionaries and sponsors.  Learn more about Operation Thanks-Giving at www.elca.org/handinhand.  –Pr. Twila Schock.

Robin Strickler (Rwanda) writes, “I give thanks to all the church members who have cared so much about education for Rwandans thousands of miles away from their own communities. I give thanks to my parents and sisters who have tolerated me being so far from them. I give thanks to my husband who constantly advises and encourages me.  And, I give thanks to the students and teachers at the school who remind me about what is truly important in God’s kingdom . . .  that we love what is right and walk very humbly with our God!” 

ELCA missionary Robin Strickler serves in Rwanda, working in education development. Started by Rwandan refugees, returning from the genocide of 1994, the Lutheran Church of Rwanda has a 17,000 members. As a new church body, the LCR focuses on training leaders and is building a secondary school and a women’s center.   

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A member of St. Luke’s in Park Ridge, Illinois, offered this sentiment in the card he made for Operation Thanks-Giving:

When life brings you turkeys…
…make thanksgiving.

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Thanks to Our Savior’s Lutheran Sunday school for the 17 handmade Operation Thanks-Giving cards that arrived today. 

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November 1, 2009–All Saint’s Day–marks the official start of  the first annual Operation Thanks-Giving. 

The idea began as  Pr. Twila Schock, Global Mission Support director and my boss, told the story of her first Thanksgiving as a missionary. She told how November in general and Thanksgiving in particular can be downright difficult, especially for first-year missionaries.  One thing led to another and we decided to “seize the thanks-giving” and show missionaries a little love by sending them “I’m thankful for you” cards.  

The “first” of “first annual” is obvious.  Editor types will note that what began as “Operation Thanksgiving Card” became “Operation Thanksgiving” and now seems to have settling in as either “Operation Thanks-Giving” or “OPERATION THANKS-GIVING.”   We’re learning as we go.   The “Q & A” below resulted from great questions asked by Trinity Lutheran Church in Vale, N.C. 

The “annual” in “first annual” assumes “Operation Thanks-Giving” (or whatever name it ends up) will catch on.  It trusts that, if  invited to a thanks-giving party, the good people of the ELCA will come.  They will offer encouraging and sustaining gifts.  They will make Operation Thanks-Giving cards and give ELCA Missionary Sponsorship donations. 

I know we are a thankful people, both blessed and a blessing.  Still, I was nervous.  “Do you think people will send cards?” I asked Twila.  “It could take time to catch on, but we’ll get cards,” she reassured.  Two-hours later I received the e-mail from Trinity Lutheran.  They wondered how many cards the congregation should prepare in order to send one to every ELCA missionary.  Imagine!  We could have an abundance of thanks-giving to share!

Operation Thanks-Giving Q&A

1. How many cards would we need to prepare to be able to send one to each missionary or missionary family?

There are 258 missionaries, 88 of whom are in their first year.

2. Can we put our church name and individual names on the cards?

You bet! You might want to include one e-mail address, too. I can’t promise that you’ll hear back from the missionary who receives the card (we don’t want to tie an obligation-to-respond to these random acts of thankfulness), but I’m thinking you could receive return e-mails.

3. When must you receive them to have time to distribute them?

There’s no deadline for thankfulness, so we’ll distribute the cards as they come in. We’ll scan and e-mail the cards we receive by November 21, so as many reach the missionaries as possible before Thanksgiving. Then, beginning in December, we’ll begin mailing all the cards (even those we’ve e-mailed) once a month.

4. I assume that we will send them to you in a bulk package. Will we need to provide envelopes for each?

You won’t; envelopes are not needed.

5. Is there a fee for postage?

It would be greatly appreciated if you included a donation for ELCA Missionary Sponsorship along with the cards. Make out the check to ELCA Missionary Sponsorship and place “MSG0340″ or “where needed most” on the memo line of your check.

Find Twila’s “My first Thanksgiving as a missionary” story on the second side of the Fall 2009 Hand in Hand newsletter.  Find useful “Operation Thanks-Giving” links at www.elca.org/handinhand.  During the month of November watch the Hand in Hand Blog Digest for “Thanks-Giving” stories by missionaries and sponsors.  E-mail your “Operation Thanks-Giving” stories to globalmissionsupport@elca.org.

Thankful blessings, Sue Edison-Swift

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The following reflection by Dana Dutcher, an ELCA missionary serving in Japan, is drawn from one of her blog posts.  Participate in Operation Thanks-Giving and offer ELCA missionaries like Dana encouraging and sustaining support.–Sue

Since I have taken residence in Japan I have been struggling with being disconnected from people. With the exception of a few friends, I feel as though I’ve been cut off from everyone and thrown into a land where relationships are prohibited by an ever-pervasive language barrier. I understand that with time this barrier will slowly dissipate, but for the moment it is a bit daunting. These severed relationships not only stem from moving away from Rogers, Arkansas, but also from leaving my last home, Valparaiso University. I never realized how nourished my spiritual life was there or how strong my relationships were until they were not physically present everyday.

That said, last night we visited the Lutheran Seminary here in Tokyo for an evening prayer service. I asked various questions about what the service would entail. Would it be in English? Who would be there? How long would it last?

Then someone told me in was the Holden Evening Prayer service, “do you know it?” they asked. I almost had tears in my eyes when I replied yes. Something I once took for granted has come to mean more to me than I can verbalize. This prayer service has been my weekly routine for the past four years. At Valparaiso every Sunday night at 10 pm we have our Candlelight service, which is the Holden Evening Prayer.  This service became tradition throughout college, something that has been fulfilling for me spiritually, something that connected us as a campus and something to begin our week.

As I sang loudly (the hymns were in English!) I realized that although I may be 7,000 miles away from home, I am still connected.

To all my Valparaiso kin, know that next time you are at Candlelight service, I very well may be participating in the same service thousands of miles away. Whenever we feel as though we are separated from everything and everyone we know and love, take a breath and realize it’s all the same…just a different location. This really has put some situations in perspective for me; it was just what I needed. No matter how disconnected I may feel from someone or my “homeland” God gives me those reminders…you are still home.  –Dana Dutcher is an ELCA missionary serving in Japan

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Four gift cards are available to announce gift donations to ELCA Missionary Sponsorship and ELCA Global Gifts (e.g., Lutheran Schools in the Holy Land).  Contact Global Mission Support to request the “Remembering” memorial-gift card and the “Thanking,” “Celebrating,” and “Honoring” tribute-gift cards.

Thankful blessings, Sue
P.S.  In the cool new ELCA Good Gifts catalog, find Global Mission Support gift-donation suggestions on pages 14-15 (”inspire”) and pages 18-19 (”partner”).

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Singapore is the meeting point of many church traditions within Asia. One of the challenges for Jeff Truscott, ELCA missionary teaching worship at Trinity Theological College, is to introduce students to the theology and practices that have shaped church worship throughout history.

Truscott and students experiencing an Easter Vigil

In a recent class, he led his class in experiencing the Easter Vigil. Many students come from non-liturgical traditions. For them and even those who do have liturgies, the vigil gave new meaning to baptism within the context of the theology of Christ’s death and resurrection.

Truscott reports that students found special meaning in the service of light and the service of readings from the Old Testament. “The strong symbolism in the service communicated powerfully to them,” he says.

After this vigil experience, students submitted a paper that reflected on how they could use, adapt, and possibly augment this service for use in their own churches and traditions in different Asian countries.

This was just a start. Next semester, Truscott plans to have his worship and liturgy class celebrate the entire Paschal Triduum during a one-day long retreat/workshop that will be open to the entire seminary community.

Y. Franklin Ishida
Director for Asia and the Pacific, ELCA Global Mission

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A friend shared this true story with the Rev. Heidi Torgerson, associate director for Global Service.  Heidi shared it with me and secured permission for me to share it on the “Hand in Hand” blog digest. 
Enjoy! —Sue

After Bible study one morning, a member of the congregation I serve stopped by the office.  She told me that she has an annual tradition:  as a birthday gift to herself she writes a check for the number of years she’s been on this earth and gives it to a charity she’s not supported before.  

 She said she had been struggling to figure out where the money should go until hearing the sermon my co-pastor preached.  In his sermon, the pastor mentioned the new missionaries we’re supporting as a congregation, Brian and Kristen Konkol, who serve in South Africa.

 ”That’s when I knew where my gift should go,” she said.  “I grew up in South Africa.”

 When I handed her the Hand in Hand newsletter with Brian and Kristen’s picture and a bit of their story; she nearly danced in my office. The place they are living is the same place she went to school and lived for a while. She truly felt that God was calling her to help support them.

Her joy spilled over like sunshine in my office.  As I told her how to direct her gift for the Konkol’s missionary sponsorship, I felt like dancing, too.

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Join Operation Thanks-Giving!

Make and send “I’m thankful for you” cards to your sponsored missionaries and other service personnel  connected to you and your congregation.

During the month of November, “Hand in Hand” blog posts will share “I’m thankful” stories and reflections offered by ELCA missionaries and sponsors.   Encourage others to subscribe to the blog and receive new posts by email; just follow the link on the right-hand column of http://blogs.elca.org/handinhand.

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